The
Municipal Center for History possesses today a rich archive
that consists of the Volos Municipality archive (1883-1982),
46 private archives concerning directly or indirectly the
city and its greater area, archives of old industrial enterprises,
as well as important material of building plans, maps, aerial
photos, transparencies and photos.

The
library of Volos's Municipal Center for History and Documentation
started operating in 1992, its aim being the collection,
administration, utilization and promotion of any kind or
form of printed documents.

A few days before the opening of the Olympic Games, a dedication
article to figures of sports in magnesia could not just
be the registration of the most important athletes with
big records and distinctions, but a whole report to persons
and events, that developed the sport life of the city and
the wider area. And these are many and explain why Volos
is included to the few areas of Greece where so many different
sports have been developed with so much success.

To be able to avoid the simple and endless apposition in
plethora of information for the athletic activities in our
area from the end of nineteenth century to our days, our
material was organized based on those Olympic sports which
have not only rich history, but also dynamic present to
panhellenic and international level. That is the only reason
why from this dedication article there are no references
to volleyball, cycling, martial arts, handball and other
sports with remarkable presence to the recent and modern
sport picture of Volos.

The process of sports in Volos and Magnesia is recorded
to the magazine pages within the conditions these sports
were born in our area, the foundation of sports clubs, the
sports facilities, the big collective or individual distinctions
in Panhellenic and international level, the people who supported
the sports development, while also those whose achievements,
although, they were out of the sport competition boundaries,
had successful results. Also the dedication article pages
are complete with texts for paralympic sports, the local
administration's part in sport development and with a proper
presentation of Magnesia athletes who one month before the
big event of Olympic Games of Athens 2004, have many possibilities
of taking part in them.

The article's composition was assigned to persons of sports
who, either from their own experience (old athletes, coaches,
agents, journalists) or as formal representatives sports
associations, wrote all above. We thank all of them dearely,
for their prompt response in our effort, as much as everybody
who helped in the accumulation of a large amount of significant
and rare documents of Volos sport history from the Municipal
History Centre (DI.Κ.Ι).

From these dedication article extensive references the process
of clubs or the catalogues with names and records of athletes
who were distinguished with Panhellenic victories in various
age categories are missing. And that because, in spite of
being important, they have already been registered to the
clubs records have been accepted in sport funs' conscience
and their apposition in here would disorientate from our
target for a brief and collective presentation of the issue
which is Volos sports life.